PICTURES: Meteor shower lights up Sussex sky

James Butler

Stargazers across the county were treated last night to an impressive meteor shower.

The annual Perseid meteor shower has been going on since mid-July, but hit its peak last night.

According to the Met Office, the best viewing time was between midnight and dawn, when more than 100 meteors were expected to be seen every hour.

John-Paul Brophy from Eastbourne sent in these pictures, which he took in the early hours of this morning.

Kim Harris from Haywards Heath also tweeted to say she saw two meteors in the space of 10 minutes last night.

The phenomenon is caused by debris from the tail of the Swift–Tuttle comet entering the Earth’s atmosphere and burning up, appearing as bright streaks of light crossing the sky. The particles – which can be as small as a grain of sand – meet a fiery end after roughly a thousand years, as part of the comet’s dust cloud.

The Perseid meteor shower lit up the sky over Sussex last night (Saturday, August 12). Picture: John-Paul Brophy

The Perseids are so-called because the point from which they appear, known as the radiant, lies in the constellation of Perseus.

Did you take some pictures of last night’s meteor shower that you can send us? Please email copydesk.sussex@jpress.co.uk with your photos.